by Kim Linwood
Evie’s pale blue eyes go wide. “No! You’re having a lark.”
“We have people that manage the business side so it’s more or less a vacation home with bottomless wine.”
“You’re telling me, if she married your brother, she’d have a vineyard?”
What the fuck? I glare at Evie.
She holds up her hands innocently, but there’s a sparkle in her eyes. “Kidding, kidding. I’m sure you’re a catch too. So… big and manly.”
Andrea drapes herself over a chair by the window. The sun is just inching up to hit the windows behind her, making her hair shimmer like a halo. A small smile turns up the corner of her mouth as she catches me watching.
She’s mine.
“She’s not marrying Marc,”
“I don’t know, that wedding dress was pretty fab. Are you offering?”
All these questions are really pissing me off. I’m trying to do the right thing in a situation that only has the wrong fucking answers. “Are you always this irritating?”
Evie fixes me with an uncomfortably direct look. “Andrea deserves someone who’s going to fight for her. Are you that guy? Because so far you two have just been dancing around like kids trying to pretend they didn’t just empty the cookie jar.”
My shoulders tighten. “I’m here, aren’t I? I’d die for her.”
“Ooooh. Big deal. I’d jump in front of a truck to save a cat, but I don’t have one because I can’t be arsed to remember to feed it. Heroics mean making one brave decision. Being a hero means making it over and over again.”
“Are you seriously comparing my relationship with Andrea to remembering to feed a cat?”
“If the litter-box fits…”
I growl.
“Look,” Evie’s voice softens. Annoying as she might be, she cares about her friend. “She needs you, and if you can’t be there for her, then decide now, because I need to know how much glue it’s going to take to put her heart back together.”
Indignance wars with guilt inside me. I wasn’t ready for any of this. Not the woman, not the baby, not the heaping pile of shit I’m going to get from the families.
But neither was she.
Have I really been stalling?
I don’t like what the answer says about me.
I lock eyes with Evie. “Take her out for a while.” We did a cursory cleaning last night. Just enough to make the kitchen safe and the couches clear to sleep on. “I’ll give you some cash for lunch and whatever you guys need for another night, but give me time to make this place livable.”
Evie nods. “I can do that. And when we get back?”
“It’s time to sort this out.”
36
Andrea
By the time I pull up to the lake house, the sun is just a sliver on the horizon. It seems like it was just summer, but it won’t be long before we see the first snowflakes of the year.
By this time next year, I’ll be a mother.
Holy crap.
Down in my pile of new stuff, buried under a toothbrush and a few other things we picked up, is a ridiculously tiny bag that feels heavier than everything else combined. Nestled inside, is a small fluffy duck, and a couple of onesies.
Newborn size.
“I can’t believe I let you take me into that store.”
“What? The baby store?” Evie laughs. “You’re going to have to get used to it sooner or later, and as this critter’s unofficial auntie, I’m responsible for spoiling them rotten.”
“I know, but…” The lights are on inside the house, and there’s a shadow moving around. Montana. “This makes it feel so real.”
“You know what else will make it feel real? Contractions.”
I wince at the thought. “Are you trying to comfort me? Because I think you’re doing it wrong. God, I’m too young for this.”
“Mum was seventeen when she had me. Twenty-two isn’t so bad. At least you’re almost done with Uni.”
“True.” And it’s not like I expected to ever get a real job anyway.
There’s so much of my future I never let myself think about, and now it’s all coming down on me at once. I need air. Throwing open the car door, I get out, only to turn and lean my weight against the car. Nausea is making me woozy.
“Is it morning sickness? You don’t look so good.” Evie comes around the car and puts a hand on my arm. “Maybe we should get inside so you can lie down.”
“No, it’s not that.” I take a deep breath of the crisp fall air, so different out here than it is in the city. “Not just that, anyway. It’s everything.”
The initial shock has passed, and now I’m just scared. Scared of being pregnant. Scared of what will happen when the Caporossis finally find out. Scared Montana will decide it’s all too much and leave.
Scared he’ll stay and break my heart. He wants the baby, of course. What about me?
I slide down the car door, coming to a rest on my heels with my head between my knees. “I’m pathetic.”
Evie crouches down next to me. “You aren’t, love. You’re just human.” She reaches into her pocket and tap dances a pair of baby booties up my leg.
I yank them away and try to glare at her, but I can’t keep from laughing. “Stop it. I’m going to be responsible for keeping a helpless human being alive and I can barely take care of myself. In what world is this a good idea?”
“The world where you decided to bump uglies on a plane with a sexy mobster. It could’ve been worse.”
“How?”
“It could’ve been me.”
I give her a shove, and not really expecting it, she topples over onto the ground. The sound of Evie’s laughter follows me as I walk into the house.
With friends like this…
As soon as I’m inside, I can tell Montana’s been busy. The whole house smells like lasagna, and underneath that is the crisp, astringent scent of cleaning products. The marble floors are spotless, and everything gleams.
Woah. “Montana?”
“One sec.” The oven door bangs shut. “Sorry, was just checking on dinner.” He comes out from the kitchen, and takes my bags. “Did you have a good time?”
“Yeah, we went into town and…” The sight of the main rooms stops me in my tracks. There are candles in the windows. What happened to this place? “Did you really spend the whole time cleaning?”
He lifts one shoulder in a half-hearted shrug. “I made some calls. Don’t look too hard at the side rooms, but you can sleep in a real bed tonight without a gas mask.”
I notice he doesn’t mention if he’ll be joining me in it or not. “And the food?”
“Delivery. I’m just keeping it warm.” Montana rubs the back of his neck sheepishly. His sleeves are rolled up to his elbows, and the action makes his muscles move in very distracting ways.
“We could’ve stayed and helped you know.” We should have stayed and helped. That would’ve been the polite thing to do, right? Instead of browsing stores and buying clothes for a person the size of a walnut.
Evie comes in behind me. “You’ve been a busy badger today, haven’t you? What’s for dinner?” She continues on past to check the oven.
Montana ignores her, his black eyes watching me too closely to be casual. “I wanted to get it done for you. I don’t know what products are safe for you to use, or if breathing too much dust is bad for the baby.”
“Right, exactly. That’s why I didn’t go too crazy yesterday.” I’m going to be a hopeless mother. That didn’t even occur to me. Now I feel even worse. Sorry, baby. I’m kind of winging it here. “I should go put my stuff away. Is my room clean?” I reach for the bags but he swings them out of my reach.
“Yeah, it was the first one they did. I’ll help.”
I give him a look. “I can carry a few bags.”
“Just… let me help.”
“Ooookay. If it’s that important to you.” I lead the way, very self-conscious of the fact that I have a mountainous man carrying what can’t b
e more than a pound of bags behind me.
“I know you can carry this,” he says quietly as we walk up the stairs.
“Good, because I’m pregnant, not an invalid.”
We reach the door, and he looks down at me. He doesn’t say anything, but there’s so much pent-up feeling in his expression that I can’t stop myself from reaching up and cupping his cheek. The truth hits me like a bolt of lightning to the heart.
He wants to take care of me, and he doesn’t have a clue what he’s doing either.
I take a leap of faith. “Do you want to see what I bought?”
37
Andrea
“ ‘I just did nine months on the inside.’ Seriously?” Montana holds up a bright, prison orange onesie with the words stenciled across the front. “A little close to home, don’t you think?”
I wince. “Don’t look at me. That was all Evie.”
The results of my little shopping trip are scattered over the top of the bed. I didn’t buy a lot, but these will be the baby’s very first things. It’s a big deal for a few scraps of cotton.
Montana snorts a laugh. “Why am I not surprised? And this one?”
It’s a tiny pink t-shirt that says ‘Diva In Training’. I’d love to deny that I bought it, but it had ruffles. Ruffles. “That one was me. I figure we have a fifty-fifty chance, right?”
The shirt is tiny resting in his oversize hand. He looks at me in amazement. “This has to be made for a doll, right? How can a human being fit into this?”
“The same way it fits in me.” I put my hand over my stomach. “I’m kind of glad they aren’t any bigger.”
Montana chuckles and brushes his fingers over my hand before turning back to the bed. “What’s in there?” He reaches for a tissue-wrapped bundle hidden under the rest of the things.
“Nothing.” I grab it before he can get his hands on it, but he scoops me up instead. With a heavy drop that makes the bed creak, he sits down with me draped over his lap, face down and ass in the air. “Hey!”
“If it’s nothing, then you don’t mind me looking, do you? What is it? Fancy underwear?” He plucks it out of my hand and pulls open the paper with a grin.
Inside is another onesie, but this one’s special. Maroon and gray, with ‘MONTANA’ written in bold font across the top, a bear paw print in the middle, and ‘Grizzlies’ in what looks like a child’s scrawl under the paw. I almost didn’t buy it, but when I saw the rack full of college gear and one of them had his actual name on it, I couldn’t resist.
Right now, though, waiting for his reaction, I’m insecure. What if he thinks I’m trying to pressure him into something? We did this so backwards. I’m having new relationship jitters over the man whose baby I’m carrying.
“I know it’s dumb. I don’t even know what kind of team that is. Probably football, right? I can take it back.” I grab for it but he holds it out of my reach and shifts so I’m even more stuck on his lap.
“You’re not taking this back,” he says gruffly. “And before you say that again, remember that I’ve got you in the perfect position for a spanking.”
Crap. He’s right.
I freeze. “You wouldn’t dare.”
“Oh really?” Montana raises a hand and brings it down onto my ass. Not hard, but enough to make me yelp and glare at him. He laughs and pats my butt. “You’re right, but only because you’re pregnant. Once our legacy is born, all bets are off.”
I should be mad, but he’d never really hurt me. All I feel is warm and squishy inside at the thought of him taking charge like that. Not that I’m going to tell him that. “I’d never let you.”
“No?” His smile turns predatory. “I think you would.”
I shake my head, trying not to smile. “Never in a million years.”
“I guess we’ll have to wait and see.” Montana’s hand slides over the curve of my butt and his fingers trace the seam of my jeans until they’re right between my legs. My responding whimper must not be very convincing, because underneath me, his body reacts to the sudden erotic turn of our conversation.
He doesn’t stop me when I twist in place and sit up on his lap. My thighs straddle his, and I run my hands up the front of his shirt, fingering the gap between two of the buttons.
Rich brown eyes, the color of hot espresso watch me as I raise my hands and stroke the sides of his jaw. His beard is longer than it was when we met. I doubt he’s paid much attention to it this past week. Montana always seems to be straddling the line between cultured and barbarian, and today is no different.
We manage to steal moments together, but more and more it’s not enough. Somewhere in the city, people are getting ready for my wedding. My dress is being adjusted, food is being ordered… my groom is looking for a tux.
For all of my running, I haven’t really gotten anywhere.
“I don’t know if we have time to wait and see.”
“I’ll make the time,” he says it with enough conviction to make me want to believe him. “And we have tonight.”
I lean in until our lips are nearly touching. “Then kiss me.”
He puts his hands on my hips and flips me over onto the bed. I land flat on my back, and in a matter of seconds his hands are at my clothes, yanking down my jeans and working at my shirt.
“My lips are up here,” I tease.
“If I start kissing you, I’m not going to want to stop.”
I give him a hand unbuttoning his shirt. “That’s a problem?”
“It is when I want to fuck you and there are clothes in the way.” Montana hooks his fingers in my panties and tugs them down my thighs.
“Oh,” I whisper. A bolt of heat sizzles its way down my body, coming to a hot, wet rest between my legs. “That’s a very good point.”
He unhooks his belt, and I watch with parted lips as his pants and boxers drop to the floor. My eyes are drawn straight to the heavy cock bobbing under the edge of his shirt.
“My lips are up here,” he says with a chuckle, shedding the rest of his clothes.
“Mmhm.” I can’t take my eyes off him long enough to care.
I pounce.
He’s standing at the end of my bed, and by the guttural hiss that explodes out of him, he wasn’t expecting me to suck the head of his cock right into my mouth. “Holy fuck!”
If it wasn’t for the way he’s stretching my lips, I’d be grinning like crazy. Montana’s hands fist in my hair as I slide my tongue along the smooth skin of his cock. My mouth waters and eases the way as I pull him in deeper. I’m just getting into it when he shoves me back and climbs onto the bed, pressing me down into the mattress.
He’s hard as steel and we’re both more than ready when he settles between my legs. “Ready?”
“Fuck, yeah,” I whisper huskily.
“Fuck, yeah,” he repeats with a smile, before pushing into me.
I thrust my hips against him as he pushes into my eager body. We both groan in pleasure as he fills me. His breath is hot against my neck as he thrusts, his girth stretching me just right. I arch my back, silently asking for more.
He gives it to me.
My hips are crushed into the bed as he thrusts like a man possessed. I cling to his shoulders, hanging on for dear life. Endlessly hungry for each other, our lips crash together and his tongue delves into my mouth.
This isn’t making love.
We’re too worked up, and there’s a tinge of desperation in every thrust, every touch. We might not say it out loud, but we both know everything can come crashing down around us at any moment.
I slide my hands up between us, tracing his abs flexing under his flat stomach. His small nipples are rock hard, and I tease him by lightly catching them between my nails. He gasps softly into my mouth, and twists his hips, letting his cock sweetly drag over my clit as he moves.
“Up,” Montana commands, pulling back quickly and flipping me over. I yelp at the sudden move, then he grabs my hips, helping me get on my hands and knees. Pressing his thighs
in between mine, he spreads me open and drives back into me so powerfully that I grunt in surprise. He caresses my back with his rough palms before slipping them under me to my breasts. “I want to play, too.”
“I wish there was a mirror so I could watch,” I admit, reminded of our first time on the plane.
He chuckles and slaps my ass. “Naughty girl.”
My muscles constrict around his cock as he fucks me. In this position, he has total access to my body, and there isn’t much I can do to stop him from taking me deep and hard.
Not that I want him to stop.
“Look at me.” His voice is hoarse, gravelly.
Braced against the mattress on my elbows, I twist to look over my shoulder as best I can. He’s huge behind me, like a bear, or a mountain. There’s a sheen of sweat on his chest, and his eyes are like black coals, smoldering in the fading light. Corded muscles ripple as he moves.
Right now, right here, I’m his.
Just as long as he doesn’t stop making me feel this way.
But it can’t last forever. You can only ride the edge so long before you fall in, and when he reaches around to stroke his finger through my slick folds, I shudder beneath him. With his thick cock inside me, his chest hot and hard against my back, and his hand working between my legs, it’s all too much.
I explode.
My whole body is on fire, and the soft keening that starts in my throat rises and falls in time to his thrusts. I fist the covers, hanging on like my life depends on it. I shake and groan while he fucks me into the bed. Stars and light explode under my eyelids as I come.
“Fuck!” Montana tenses, and every pulse sends a ripple through me as he empties himself deep inside.
Long seconds pass. We shiver against each other, not from the cold, but from the small aftershocks of pleasure that reflect back and forth between us. Finally, we collapse on my bed. Montana rips the covers back and we slide between the sheets, spent and relaxed. I press my head against his chest, listening to the strong, steady beat of his heart.